Goblin mode, or a type of behaviour which is unapologetically self-indulgenthas been chosen as the Oxford Word of the Year.
London: Goblin mode, or a type of behaviour which is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations, has been overwhelmingly chosen as the Oxford Word of the Year after a public vote on Monday.
The slang phrase was one of three shortlisted words put to a vote for the first time, with the others being metaverse or a virtual reality environment and #IStandWith used on social media to depict solidarity with a cause.
Goblin mode won the online vote by a landslide, with 318,956 votes and 93 per cent of the total.
“I think that Goblin Mode really does speak to the times and the zeitgeist, and it is certainly a 2022 expression,” said Ben Zimmer, American linguist and language columnist and one of the panelists who chose the finalists.
“People are looking at social norms in new ways. It gives people the license to ditch social norms and embrace new ones,” he said.
Oxford University Press (OUP) the publishers of the Oxford English Dictionary’ said all three words experienced substantial spikes in usage and capture significant concerns, concepts, and states that we’ve faced this year.
